Apple Date Cake with Mascarpone Buttercream and Caramel Drizzle

I found this amazing cake recipe the other day and absolutely had to make it.  Having decided that, I had to mess with the recipe.  Quite a lot.  In fact, I had to make this cake twice.  In two days.  I was having guests over for dinner on Thursday, so I made the first cake on Wednesday.  Good thing too, because the frosting was a totally broken separated molten gooey fail.  It was awful and disastrous and I knew I needed a do-over.  However, how do you justify making another 2 layer cake when one is sitting in the fridge already?  So I took it to our church on activity night (which luckily was that very night) and left it in the kitchen with a note that said "Free Cake!  Help Yourself!"  The cake was made short work of and I brought home an empty plate.  

Cake take two was also a bit vexing.  This time, the cake came out of the pan in two separate pieces.  My youngest Hungry Puppy dubbed it the "bummer cake"  because it was totally a bummer.  So we went shopping to decompress while the cake cooled.  This story ends on a positive note, as the cake totally came together, was delicious, and I bought a fabulous new pair of shoes!  The cake is moist and spiced and delicious, and the frosting is a perfect pairing.  The caramel drizzle is just icing on the cake.

Apple Date Cake with Mascarpone Buttercream and Caramel Drizzle

Apple Date Cake:
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2/3 cup sour cream
2 medium granny smith apples, peeled and shredded (about 1 cup shredded)
8 ounces chopped dates

Caramel Drizzle:
7 ounces caramels, unwrapped (I used 1/2 of a 14 ounce bag)
1 Tablespoon heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon butter

Mascarpone Buttercream:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, room temperature
2 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or substitute vanilla extract)
3 cups powdered sugar
8 ounces mascarpone cheese

Preheat the oven to 350F.  Grease the bottom and sides of 2 9-inch round cake pans, then line the bottoms with rounds of parchment paper, then lightly grease the paper (don't skip this step!).  Set aside.

For the cake, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time, followed by the vanilla extract.  Add the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, salt, allspice, and nutmeg, and beat on low until the dry ingredients begin to incorporate.  Stop the mixer and add the sour cream, shredded apples, and dates.  Beat the mixture until incorporated.  

Divide the batter equally between the prepared pans, smoothing the tops.  Place the cakes in the preheated oven and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Remove the cakes from the oven and let cool in the pans for about 15 minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the cake to loosen, and turn the cakes out of the pans.  Peel off the parchment paper from the bottom of the cakes and let the cakes cool completely on a cooling rack before frosting.

For the caramel drizzle, place the unwrapped caramels in a microwave safe bowl.  Add the cream and butter, and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until the caramels are melted and smooth.  Set aside to cool slightly.

To make the mascarpone buttercream, beat the butter until smooth.  Add the cream, vanilla bean paste, and powdered sugar and beat until light and fluffy.  Add the mascarpone and beat on low speed just until barely incorporated (if you overbeat the mascarpone, the frosting will break and separate).

To assemble the cake, place one cake layer on a serving plate and spread with a layer of frosting. Drizzle half of the caramel over the frosting.  Place the second cake layer on top and frost the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting.  Drizzle he remaining caramel on top of the cake.  Makes 12 to 16 servings.

Enjoy!  -Cardamommy